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Two Nurses from the Philippines Welcomed to Lincolnshire Hospitals

Two registered nurses from the otherside of the world have joined United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust this week.

The two nurses have come to Lincolnshire from the Philippines, a chain of islands in Southeast Asia.

Tham Falahi, 25 from Manila and Lexi Marapao, 27, from Verceles arrived in the country on Thursday 22 September. They will be based on Waddington unit and Dixon ward respectively at Lincoln County Hospital and it is anticipated that they will be joined by three more recruits in a few weeks’ time.

Speaking of his appointment to the Trust Lexi said: “This is my first time in the UK and it feels so exciting to me. I’ve been told that Lincolnshire is England’s best kept secret so I’m really keen to get out and about and explore the county.

“I’m really looking forward to furthering my nursing skills, the technology over here is so much more advanced and the facilities are cutting edge.”

Tham added: “It’s a lot colder over here, but I love the wide open spaces and how green and rural Lincolnshire is.

“In the Philippines I was based on a general ward that saw lots of different patients with different conditions. I’m based on Waddington ward which specialises in chemotherapy patients so I’m excited to focus my skills a bit more.”

The nurses will now take part in a rigorous and diverse induction programme, before starting their new roles in wards and departments. This will involve training in equality and diversity, conflict resolution and end of life care, as well as infection prevention, frailty and managing deteriorating patients.

Initially they will be employed as pre-registration nurses and will be involved in assessments and practical workshops that will culminate in completion of a final exam at the University of Northampton. This will allow them to practice as registered nurses in the UK.

The exam replicates a clinical environment and the nurses will be presented with a series of clinical scenarios which they would be likely to encounter when caring for patients.

Michelle Rhodes, Director of Nursing at United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust said: “We are delighted to welcome Tham and Lexi to the Trust and will be doing all we can to help them settle into their new roles at ULHT and establish themselves in the community in Lincolnshire.

“As with most NHS trusts in the UK, we are experiencing a shortage of registered nurses. We are considering a number of different ways of providing safe staffing to ensure that patients receive good quality care. This has involved recruiting staff from the UK and overseas and we have achieved great successes so far, with 100 newly qualified nurses joining our hospitals earlier this month.

“The standard of registered nurses our recruitment teams found in the Philippines was extremely high. There is a significant process that the nurses have to go through before they can register to practice in the UK so this takes some time”.